


tangerines, treasures, and traumatic lectures.

by ココダ - coco (arurun)



Series: dad I swear it's not my fault but [6]
Category: One Piece
Genre: Adopted Children, Alternate Canon, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Fix-It, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-13
Updated: 2020-05-13
Packaged: 2021-03-02 18:21:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,396
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24161242
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/arurun/pseuds/%E3%82%B3%E3%82%B3%E3%83%80%20-%20coco
Summary: Loto knows everyone, has the power to lecture everyone, and fixes the Arlong disaster with one off-screen smack across the face. Hachi has trauma now.His sworn sister decided to grab herself a pair of daughters, and by extension, they're his kids now too. Darn it.
Series: dad I swear it's not my fault but [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1731370
Comments: 6
Kudos: 435





	tangerines, treasures, and traumatic lectures.

“Try saying that one more time,” holding the marine up by the neck with one arm, Loto looks at the name card in his hands, “Lieutenant Dunce.”

“It’s Ponce!” the Lieutenant squawks, offended. “You’re literally reading it!”

Loto stares at him with an expression that makes the lieutenant seriously consider running for his mom, his age be damned.

“Yes! Yes, Arlong has been here!” he says immediately, voice just one hitch before a wail. “For about three months! Then he left for another island!”

Ponce cries a little more panicked when Loto’s grip tightens.

“A big-name pirate was here for  _ three months _ ,” Loto hisses, “and none of you bothered to report back to the nearest base?”

His voice was above a whisper, haunting and seething with pure unadulterated rage. His eyes surely reflected that, because now Ponce just looks really close to shitting himself.

He just makes a dying noise and desperately tries to escape, no longer calm enough to answer the questions because he’ll probably just die anyways.

“That’s a very expensive-looking ring you have there, Lieutenant Dunce,” Loto says, and Ponce’s entire body goes rigid.

Loto punts him across the shore.

-

“I swear to fuck, Garp--”

_ “Could you have any ruder greeting for me? It’s Sengoku.” _

“Well hello Sir Sengoku you absolute fucking asshole--”

_ “I was  _ not _ issuing a challenge!” _

“Piece of absolute shits are accepting bribes from pirates, can you fucking believe--”

-

Six months of work and it’s all back to square one! God, why is East Blue so fucking huge? Could these damn Fishmen make a slightly bigger presence in the world so Loto will know where to go?

And of course all nearby marine bases have been bribed and silenced despite being utter asshole cowards that can’t  _ *this part is redacted due to incoherency and excessive swearing* _

Like seriously, where is he supposed to find more information?!  _ Sengoku I fucking hate you get me off this job and give me back my summer vacay! _

It’s been half a dozen months of not being able to go home! Yeah, he did say he wanted a break from the kids, but not like  _ this _ !

_ Purupurupurupurupuru- Gacha! _

He picks up his Den Den Mushi.

_ “Hey, Loreto!” _ it’s Garp, and when Garp uses his proper name, it's the really  _ really _ serious kind of serious, so Loto straightens.  _ “We’ve got the most solid lead thus far! And it’s urgent!” _

-

Loto honestly wasn’t sure what to expect when he heard Arlong was headed toward the Conomi Islands. 

The big name of the Sun Pirates, suddenly deciding to raid the East island by island? Sounds like some crueler rendition of the Yonko to him.

He makes it to Cocoyashi. Find out where the most of the crowd is. People are crying, bullets have been shot. Panic is headed towards a small hut on the top of the mountain--

_ Fuck _ .

That’s Arlong.

A pair of kids, a desperate scream.

A gun.

Loto’s hand reaches for his sword, and not really thinking straight, he charges.

-

“Who--” Bellemere lifts her head, cringing at the misfired shot that sank into her shoulder-- “no way… Luckner?”

Breathing heavily, Loto sighs in relief.

He hadn’t come close enough to block out the shot or get the woman out of the way, but just a warning slash of his sword made the gun falter, and fire just a little off course. 

“Just Loto,” he says, straightening his posture and putting himself between the woman and the Fishman. His coat swishes sharply against the wind, the white and blue a clear indication of his affiliation. “It’s been a while, Belle.”

“Marine Rear Admiral,” Arlong considers, dropping his gun. “Loreto Luckner. Fancy meeting you again.”

“Arlong,” Loto returns. He turns his eyes to the rest of the Fishmen. “And a few of your fellow sunshines as well. What’s your business on this island?”

He makes a sign at the back of his hand. Bellemere notices it quickly, and she grabs her children to make a dash for the crowd, where a doctor had a first-aid kit out.

Arlong’s eyes stayed on her.

“I’m doing what a pirate does,” he says, “if you don’t want to die first, you best be on your way, puny human.”

Loto instinctively reaches for his smoking pipe, only to remember he left it at the boat in his rush. He settles to scratch the back of his neck instead, chewing absently at his lip.

“Jinbei gave you one chance, Arlong,” Loto says, and the Sun Pirates stiffen. “Your soul brother gave his loyalty to the world just so you can go free. Do you want it to go to waste?”

Arlong’s fist tightens. “What Jinbei does is not my business, and neither is it yours.”

Loto brings his sword down between Arlong and Bellemere, forcing the Fishman to look at him.

“Remember, Arlong-- you laid a hand on my little sister first.” Loto glowers, eyes firm and fierce. “So I’m sure Jinbei won’t mind if I deliver you back to him a little more roughed up than when you came.”

-

Loto sighs as Doctor Nako angrily sews up his shoulder. 

Hachi and Kuroobi are on their knees beside them, the former sniffling a little like a child that just got told off. Kuroobi just looks tired.

Chew is unconscious at the side, the three bumps on his head precisely the reason why Hachi and Kuroobi aren’t fighting anymore. Arlong is (not) dead in the corner.

“Go home!” Loto snaps at them, “all of you! Go and say sorry to Queen Otohime while you’re at it! Jinbei’s a Warlord now, so you can stay on the island!”

They made whiny noises.

Loto raises a fist. Their mouths clamp shut instantly.

“And call Aladine! Isn’t he supposed to be the sensible one?! Where is he!”

He reaches over to grab Hachi by the ear (Doctor Nako smacks him for moving: “I have a needle in your skin!”) and  _ twists _ .

“Bunch of rebellious fucking children that don’t know how to goddamn  _ behave _ once Tiger’s gone, I swear to--”

“We’re sorry! We’re sorry!”

“Loto, sit the fuck down or I’ll rip your shoulder open myself!” 

-

“Uncle, are you really Bellemere-san’s big brother?”

Loto turns around. He’s sentenced to bedrest for at least another week, along with a few other Fishmen and villagers. (He punched anyone that disagreed on Fishmen treatment. Doctor Nako just wants all the morons to sleep forever.)

It seems like, while Bellemere retired, she got a little busy. She has two girls and they’re just around the same age as Ace, Sabo and Luffy.

“Nami, right?” he tries to recall their names. 

The girl smiles. Oh, she’s so cute.

“I’m Belle’s big brother. In the same way that Nojiko is your big sister,” Loto tells her. “We’re not blood related, but we grew up in the academy together.”

Nami blinks at him. 

“Can people really be a family like that?”

Now it’s Loto’s turn to do a double take. She looks down to her knees, pouting a little, her posture is just soaked with apprehension. Like she’d done something bad and hadn’t apologized for it yet.

Loto pats her on the head.

She reminds him of Sabo, honestly.

“There are different types of families in this world,” Loto tells her. “A family you choose, and a family that chooses you. They can come in any size, any combination, any colour, any species, any age.”

He picks her up so she’s laying on his lap. He cradles her head tenderly.

“Family can drift, can stretch, or sometimes they fight and split apart,” Loto says, giving Arlong’s sleeping figure in the corner one meaningful look. “But at the end of the day, family is a place you can always come back to, no matter what.”

Nami hums. “Like home?”

Loto grins. “Like home.”

-

Loto spends the next few months sailing across the Grand Line, delivering an angry mob of fishmen right back to a certain Warlord’s hands. 

He barks at anyone that dares take one faulty step too close to the sea, makes sure to yell into their heads why it isn't a good idea to terrorize the humans, and he takes the long way to Fishman Island just to get a few more scolding sessions into their thick skulls.

Let’s just say none of them dare to try again, in fear of another lecture.


End file.
